1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a multi-functional apparatus, and more particularly to a multi-functional apparatus in which cleaning of a scanner is performed without disassembling the scanner therefrom.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, a printer is an apparatus for printing data, characters, or graphics made by using a computer on a recordable paper, and a copier is an apparatus for copying a document or data in graphic form on a certain quantity of paper. On the other hand, a facsimile device is an apparatus for transferring data to a person who is in a remote place.
Office automation apparatus as described above have their respective functions. It is difficult to place all of the office automation apparatus in an office.
To overcome the difficulty as described above, the scanner, the copier, and the facsimile device are integrated into a multi-functional apparatus.
Hereinafter, an operation of the multi-functional apparatus 1 including a shuttle type scanner will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3.
A feeder 10 for feeding recordable papers is mounted at an upmost portion of the multi-functional apparatus, which has a mode 11 for feeding a sheet of the recordable paper or a document and a mode 12 for feeding the recordable papers or the document continuously. A user can select the feeding mode according to the user's convenience.
When the recordable papers or document are introduced into the feeder 10 as the user selects the feeding mode, a feed roller 21 and a friction roller 22 feed the recordable paper to be printed or the document to be scanned under a predetermined pressure.
A carriage 30 having a printhead 31 for printing data on the recordable paper and a scanner 32 for scanning the document mounted thereon are moved as the feed roller 21 and the friction roller 22 feed the recordable paper or the document.
With respect to the carriage 30, the carriage 30 is moved by a driving motor 35 as a driving source. A driving force of the driving motor 35 is transferred through a timing belt 34 to the carriage 30.
That is, when the driving motor 35 is operated, the timing belt 34 is rotated so that the carriage 30 is slidably moved along a carriage shaft.
A guide rail 36 is formed at an upper portion of a main frame 37, on which an upper portion of the carriage 30 is slidably mounted. The carriage shaft 33 is formed at a lower portion of the main frame 37, on which the carriage 30 is moved along an axis thereof. Accordingly, the carriage 30 is guided by the guide rail 36 and the carriage shaft 33.
The fed document is supported by a document support 40 disposed below a movement path of the carriage 30.
While the carriage 30 is moved along the carriage shaft 33, the printhead 31 and the scanner 32 are independently operated. When a command for printing data on the recordable paper is inputted into the multi-functional apparatus, ink is injected by nozzles 31a of the printhead 31 to print the data on the recordable paper. When a command for scanning the document is inputted into the multi-functional apparatus, the scanner 32 scans the document.
The printed paper on which the data are printed by the printhead 31 and the scanned document which is scanned by the scanner 32 pass between the carriage 30 and the document support 40, and are in turn discharged by a discharger 50 which includes a paper discharging roller 51 and a star-shaped roller 52.
In a view of an inner structure of the scanner 32, the scanner 32 includes a housing 320 (FIGS. 4 and 5) having an opening at a lower portion thereof, a lamp 320a as a light source disposed in the housing 320, lenses 320b through which light passes after being emitted from the lamp 320a and reflected by the document, and a charge coupled device sensor 320c for converting the reflected light passing through the lenses 320b into a voltage to detect data.
In the multi-functional apparatus according to the conventional art, there is a disadvantage in that the scanner 32 cannot scan the document since an alien substance, such as dust or ink injected by the nozzles 31a of the printhead 31 on the carriage 30, is introduced into and pollutes the printhead 31 and the scanner 32.
To prevent the printhead 31 and the scanner 32 from being polluted, a transparent window is assembled to the opening of the scanning housing 320 so that the ink or the dust can be prevented from being introduced into the scanner housing 320.
In the multi-functional apparatus according to the conventional art as described above, however, the alien substance such as the ink or the dust is not introduced into the scanner housing 320 due to a presence of the transparent window 320d, but is smeared on a surface of the window 320d. Accordingly, when the alien substance is stacked on the window 320d, the light cannot be transmitted through the window 320d, so that the scanner 32 cannot precisely scan the document.
The alien substance such as the ink or the dust must be removed from the window 320d in order that the scanner can scan the document. The removing of the alien substance is accomplished by cleaning the window 320d with cotton or a piece of cloth.
However, there is no space in which dusting implements can be positioned between the scanner 32 and the document support 40. There is a difficulty in that, in order to clean the window 320d, the scanner 32 must be disassembled from the body of the multi-functional apparatus.